Geraniol and cinnamaldehyde as natural antibacterial additives for poly(lactic acid) and their plasticizing effects

The main goal of this study is to prepare antibacterial poly(lactic acid) (PLA) containing cinnamaldehyde and geraniol and to evaluate the antibacterial activity and assess the changes of physical properties of the PLA films. Cinnamaldehyde- and geraniol-incorporated (10%, 20%, 30%, and 50% v/w) PLA films were prepared via solution-casting. While preparing these films, plasticizers were not added to the matrix. Antibacterial activities of these films against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were investigated by the disk diffusion method. Thermal degradation characteristics were analyzed via thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), glass transition, crystallization, and melting temperatures, and enthalpies of the films were determined from differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) scans. Tensile strength and elongationat-break values of neat PLA and antibacterial-compound-containing films were evaluated and compared after the mechanical tests. Moreover, the changes in the polymer morphology were observed by SEM analysis, and opacity of the films was determined by UV-vis spectroscopy. Our results showed that both compounds provided antibacterial effect to the PLA, with cinnamaldehyde being more effective than geraniol. Moreover, plasticization effects of the compounds were confirmed by DSC analysis.